Virgin Group said it would use the stake sale proceeds “to support its portfolio of global leisure, holiday and travel businesses that have been affected by the unprecedented impact of COVID-19.”

Branson had initially asked the government for a loan in order to keep the Virgin Atlantic afloat and even offered to put his luxury Caribbean retreat Necker Island up as security against the loan.

But Chancellor Rishi Sunak has held firm ever since he wrote to airlines and airports in March saying the taxpayer would only step in “as a last resort.”

A rescue package for the airline would have been politically toxic given its super-wealthy backer has not paid personal tax in the UK for 14 years after moving to the British Virgin Islands – a well-known tax haven.

As a result Virgin Atlantic has been left fighting for survival after the coronavirus pandemic caused it to cancel thousands of flights.